As I mentioned in the Memphis Anniversary Trip article, my day hiking shoes have bit the dust. My first pair of hiking shoes were the Salomon Function and after two pairs of them, and having the soft tread worn off them, snagging the mesh outer layer on a tree stump, it became time to find something that would hold up longer. Garmont was my next company of choice, and I really liked the more aggressive look with the tread and full wrap around leather outer layer. The leather took a beating and continued to hold up until the seams started to tear around both sides of the toe box. I bought another pair and tried to pamper them but they died with the same outcome. My Garmonts are still somewhat alive not for the hiking trips, they are doomed to being used for only yard work now. This is where "The Great Shoe Hunt" begins.

Gear no matter what style, brand, or company that you love from time to time changes their ways of producing, selling, or may revamp a gear product to make it better or worse. For a person that loaves the outdoors it is our job, the consumer, to let those gear companies know what we like and prefer. This is what makes gear better and more specific for the activities that we enjoy.

Researching the different brands of shoes becomes really hard when local retailers limit their selection. I f you are either researching on the internet or by word of mouth you eventually need to head into a retailer to try on that specific type of shoe. If the retailer does not have a vast selection of shoes than you may be forced to settle for something that may or may not be exactly what you wanted or need. This is why when I am researching I check with both retailers, online, by word of mouth, and I go on trips to browse different retailers' inventories of shoes. I have learned by checking out retailers and outfitters that I have been able to try on shoes that may have not been sold near my home. I am a small, 6 foot 3, 250 pound gear junkie that likes to know what is out there to purchase that will fit my needs. I blaze through a trail and sweat mere buckets. This means when on the shoe hunt Gore-Tex is out. I can not afford the extra cost and have not had any good experiences with this product. Now, hold on a minute. I am not saying that it is not a good product but just trying to say from my years on the trail and out in the great outdoors it has not worked for me.

Here is a list of questions that helped to focus my researching efforts.

What type of shoe are you looking for? (approach, multi-sport, trail-running, day hiking)

Is there a particular brand or company that you like more than another?

What type of hiking or use are you going to use these shoes for?

Are there certain features that you need to have and can not live with out?

What shoes are you looking at?

Look for our The Great Shoe Hunt Part 2 of 3 were I will answer the above questions in detail.



Bentley - VentureTree Team